Welcoming Others, Welcoming Christ
Sermon preached by Dn. Jeff Smith on Sunday, October 27, 2024
In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Christ is in our midst!
Good Morning!
Today I would like to preach on St. Paul’s Epistle to the Corinthians, in which he writes that God loves a cheerful giver, that He will provide us with every blessing in abundance, and that we will always have enough of everything we need. As it is written, “He who gives to the poor, his righteousness will endure forever. He who supplies food for the hungry will multiply their resources and increase their harvest, and you will be enriched in every way for your great generosity.” There is so much to talk about regarding this epistle. I notice in part, it’s clearly a fundraising appeal from St. Paul to give generously and be enriched in return. But it’s more than just fundraising. Saint Paul is pointing to a fundamental truth, that we are indeed enriched when we give freely and generously. And it directly relates to the meatball sub fundraiser we are doing after liturgy today for medical relief and neighborhood outreach in which your donations will be increased at least tenfold.
But I would also like to talk about this epistle within the context of what is happening around us in Central Square. Not too long ago, I found two men curled up in a fetal position, literally dying on our doorstep. It was tragic to witness our neighbors in this position, since they too are the image of God. I called 911 and luckily an officer responded quickly with Narcan and an ambulance arrived in time to save their lives. Knowing that the danger of opioid death exists right here on our doorstep, it’s imperative that we are ready to help.
Last week Father Anthony called us to be a “Matthew 25 Church” Now I don’t think we need to get political about this, but I think we can do better to understand what a “Matthew 25 Church” means, so I looked it up, and this is what I found when I searched online for “Matthew 25 Church.”
“When we welcome others, we welcome Christ; when we bring together people who are divided, we are doing God’s reconciling work. We are all called to serve Christ by contributing to the well-being of the most vulnerable – rural and urban, small and large, young and old. From planting community gardens to pointing the way toward healing for addiction and mental illness, make no mistake, Jesus is calling us to perform acts of ordinary compassion in our daily lives. In doing so, we will continue Christ’s work of proclaiming release to captives and good news to the poor — the good news of God’s righteousness and peace for all, just as it says in today’s epistle: “He who gives to the poor, his righteousness will endure forever. He who supplies food for the hungry will multiply their resources and increase their harvest, and you will be enriched in every way for your great generosity.” This is a harvest of abundance.
We know that we can trust in God, and that when we give freely and cheerfully, He will provide us with every blessing, as St. Paul writes in the epistle today. I am aware that we already give a lot, and we will continue to give with good sense and support.
So, what can we do specifically? If you are called to help the people around us, specifically, what can we do? Number one: there is a meatball sub fundraiser downstairs today after liturgy for medical relief and neighborhood outreach. Your donations will be increased ten-fold at least, so come downstairs. If you feel you’d like to do more to serve the homeless, there are many ways to help. We make subs on the first and third Sundays of every month, so come on down to the parish hall and help us deliver them to our neighbors. That’s our neighbor outreach. I’d like to direct you also to our collaboration with Starlight Ministries in Central Square, and I also suggest that you reach out Patrick Tutella, our chaplain whose done amazing work in his ministry to the homeless, so you can learn more about all of this by talking to me or Deacon James, or Father Antony or Patrick Tutella, who is doing amazing work with the homeless.
So, I wanted to end As Jesus said in the Gospel Matthew: “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” Thanks be to God.